Switching device



H. P. LEWIS.

SWITCHING DEVICE. APPUCATION FILED FEB. 11, 1921.

Patented Mar. 7, 1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

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H. P. LEWIS. SWITCHING DEVlCE. APPLICATION man FEB. 11. 1921.

1,4085 1 3. Patented Mar. 7, 1922..

2 SHEETS-'SHEEI 2.

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UNITED, STATES l HARRY 1. LEWIS, OF OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA.

SWITCHING DEVICE.

Application filed February 11, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY P. LEWIS, a subject of the King of the UnitedKingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Ottawa, Province ofOntario, Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Switching Devices, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to switching devices for switch-points used inconnection with railway tracks, the same being of the type in which themotorman of a car can operate a plunger thereon which is adapted tocontact with the switching device to swing the switch-pointto the rightor to the left, according to the direction which the motorman wishes hiscar to take. -The prescut invention is particularly useful in connectionwith electric railways, and preferably comprises purelylmechanicalmechanism. One of the objects of the invention is to provide a simplemechanical switching device, which consists, of comparatively few parts,considering the functions which the device performs and the manner inwhich it performs those functions. Another object is to provide aswitching device which is adapted to operate in all kinds of weather andafter long; exposure to the elements. Another object of the invention isto pro vide a switching device which is adapted to operate in brineduring the winter months and which can be drained in summer. Otherobjects of the invention are to provide a comparatively inexpensivedevice which'is proper is arranged;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a part of the cover showing. the switchingmechanism, partly in full, and partly indotted lines in connection witha switch-point;

' Fig, 3 is a sectional elevation of parts carried by the car inconnection with the switching mechanism proper;

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. '7, 1922.

Serial No. 444,277.

F 1g. 4 is a section of the plunger device on the car transversely toFig. 3; and

F1g. 5 is an end elevation, partly in section, showing how aswitch-point is connected with the device.

Referring to F 2 and 3, a box or casing- 10 has suitably mounted thereinthe gear may be made as one integral structure. The

wheel 14!- and the disk 18 may be said to constitute anothershifting-member, and the shiftlng-member 11 and the member 18 areadapted to' be rotated in parallel vertical planes. A' segmental ormutilated gear 13 will be located to one side of the diameter of thewheel 14, while at the other side of said diameter the wheel 14- isprovided with a segmental series of crown or mitre teeth 19, whichproject to one side of the plane of the shifting-mei'nber 11 and saidwheel 14:, that is, away from the disk or member 18.

A hearing 20 is supported in the casing 10, and one end of a jack-shaft21 is journaled therein. The. inner end of the jack shaft 21 carries awheel 22 provided with a segmental series of crown or mitre teeth 23,and these teeth are in mesh with the teeth 19 of the shifting-member14-, 1.8. Theiackshaft 21 extends away from the direction from which thecar is tooperatc the switch, and is preferably protected by acovering24lwhich ispinnod or Olil'lfll'WlSO secured to shaft 21.. Theshaft 21 and the covering 241- are preferably made of: metal tubing, thecovclung); having a sufficiently snug fit upon said shaft. The outer endof the shaft 21 is pro- .vided with a crank-arm 25, to which ispivotally connected one end of a rod 26, which extends transversely ofthe line of track, the other end of said rod being suitably secured tothe movable switch-point 27. Switch-point 27 is associated with anywellknown construction of track, so that when is a disk 18, or theyshifted, a rarinay pass in the direction desired.

On the edge of the shifting-member 11 is a trippinglug 28, and on theedge of the disk 18 there is another trippingdug 29. T he lug 29 is ineffect a projection from the duplex gear-wheel Li, and the two lugs 28,29 are so arrangr-rd that when one of the lugs is moved to stand uprightthe other lug will be inclined with respect thereto.

deferring to Fig. 1, a cover-plate in two sections 30, 31 isillustrated, these two plates being suitably joined together at theirmeeting ends 32, preferably so that a part of one platewill. set intoarecess in the other plate, as shown. The carapproaches from thedirection indicated bythe arrow in Fig. l, and the covenplate ?l is inadvance of the plate 30 which const l1: s the cover for the casing 10,it being suitably secured thereto. The two platcsflO, 31 liein onehorizontal plane, and the topsurfaces thereof are roughened orcorrugated as at 83, 3-1;, or provided with callrs to prevent slippingthereon of horses, etc. Preferably, the upper surfaces of thecovcr-plates 30, 31 are constructed as follows: The flaring entrancethroat or recess 35 is provided in the approach end of plate 31, and thebottom of said throat inclines downwardly fromthe end ed go ofsaidplate, to the forwardly-eatended pointed end 36 of a longitudinalrib 37 onthe plates 30, 31, at opposite sides of which rib are grooves38, 39. Plate 30 is provided with two longitudinal slots 40, 41, whichare in line with the grooves 38, 39, being located in the bottoms ofsaid grooves. One of the slots, as, for instance, slot 40, is locatedin. advance of the other slot. Those portions of the grooves 38, 39which are located to the rear of the slots 40, 41, are inclinedupwardly, away from the slots to the top surface of plate 30. Vhen thecover-plate 30 is mounted on the casing 10, the slots 40, e1 will bepositioned, respectively, over the member or disk 18 and the member 11,so that the tripping-lug of each may be moved to be protruded throughits slot, or to be moved downwardly from the slot. The sloping bottomsof the throat 35 and the grooves 38, 39, provide rcspectively for theengagement of the operating members of the car with the grooves, and.disengagement therefrom, and the grooves also provide for the trl 1ig ofoneof the lugs 28, 29, depending upon which of the operating members onthe car operated. 'lfhe cover-plate 30 may be provided with a handle41-2 to assure convenience of removal .of said plate. It is preferredthat the jaclo switching device is illustrated. in Figs. 3 and 4:. Inthese figures a portion l?) of a car is shown, th same having forconvenient access by the motornian, two plungers l i, do, which arenormally raised by springs 46. (line of these plungers is a right-handplunand "the other a left-hand plunger. As-

ing that the motor-man of a car desires g 'aight ahead or keep to theleft of the switclrpoint 27, he will then depress the l'l t-hand plunger45 sufliciently to cause it to enter the throat 85 and into the grooveihis depression suilices to bring the lower end of the plunger -15 intocontact with the upstanding lug 28, and as the car travels, thismovementwill cause the said pli'urger to shift the lug 28 dmvnwardly and toimpart a partial revolution to the shift ing-ineniber ll, bringing saidmember and its lug l o ti o position illustrated in Fig. 23. This parial revolution of member 1]. will. cause the teeth 12 to turn the teeth13 and the wheel lei carrying them in opposite direction, which willfurthermore cause the teeth 19 which intermesh with the teeth 23, toturn the jacloshaft 2]. in such direction as to move the cran -arm 25towards the right-hand, and hence, to similarly move the switch-point 27so that the through. track is clear, or the car will go to theleft.

Due to these movements of the gear-train, the lug 29 will be projcctedupthrough its slot, shown in Fig. 3.

Obviously, if the inotorinan desires to go to the right he will depressthat plunger which, when lowered, will engage the upstandin tripping-lug29, whereupon the train of mechanism is operated so as to swing theswitcl1-point 27 over to the left.

The described switching device is positive in its action, and beingpreferably wholly -1nechanical, it is obvious that it will operate,

even though thecasing or box 10 is partly filled with sand or earth, asthe gearing will simply grind therethrough.

T he above described invention is obtal series of spur-teeth in meshwith aforesaid series, and also having a tripping-lug at one end of itsseries of teeth, the two lugs being spaced laterally apart to turn intwo different planes, and the second shifting member also having asegmental series of crown-teeth, the two series of teeth onthe secondshifting member being located at opposite sides of the shaft whichcarries said second member, and a jackshaft connected with theswitch-point and having a gear with a segmental series of crown-teeth inmesh with aforesaid crown-teeth.

2. In a switching device, the combination of a switch-point, parallelrock-shafts, a shifting member mounted on one of: said shaftstransversely thereof and having a segmental series of spur-teeth, and atrip ping-lug at one end of the said series of teeth, a second shiftingmember mounted on the other shaft transversely thereof to turn in thesame plane as the other shifting member, and having alsegmental seriesof spur-teeth in mesh with aforesaid series, and also having atripping-lug at one end of its series of teeth, the two lugs beingspaced laterally apart to turn in two different planes, and the secondshifting member also having a segmental series of crownteeth, the twoseries of teeth on the second shifting member being located at oppositesides of the shaft which carries said second member, and a jack-shaftconnected with the switch-point and having a gear with a segmentalseries of crown-teeth in mesh with aforesaid crown-teeth.

3. In a switching device, the combination of a cover plate provided withparallel slots, one in advance of the other, a switch point,shifting-members mounted below said plate for rotation in substantiallyparallel planes and having tripping-lugs opposite said slots adapted tobe turned, a jackshaft connected with the switch-point, and gear meanscombined with said shiftingmembers and jack-shaft for projecting one ofsaid lugs through its slots as the lug is tripped, said gear meanscomprising two segmental series of intermeshing spur teeth on saidshifting-members and two segmental series of intermeshing crown or mitreteeth on one of said shiftingmembers and said jack-shaft.

4. In a switching device, a coverplate having an advanced flaring throatwith a downwardly inclined bottom, and a rib extending longitudinlly ofsaid cover-plate, between two grooves in said plate, said rib having aforwardlyextended pointed end, located in the rear of saiddownwardly-inclined bottom, and said plate having two slots, one inadvance of the other in the bottom of said grooves, and the bottoms ofsaid grooves to the rear of said slots inclining upwardly. l

HARRY P. LElVIS.

